Having been a dietitian for nearly 3 decades, I have seen many fads and diets come and go.

I do not follow any of them.

I have come to realize that there is no one diet that is perfect for everyone.

There are too many factors that affect our tolerance to foods for one single diet to work.

In fact, I have come to believe that everyone would benefit from removing gluten (and in some cases all grains) and dairy for at least 4 weeks.

This once-off experiment would highlight if certain foods were affecting you. Although it seems obvious in hindsight, many do not connect their physical symptoms to the food they are eating and drinking every day.

I see this a lot.

Headaches, cravings, constant hunger, abdominal pain, bloating, headaches, sleep disturbances, premenstrual symptoms, lack of energy, mood swings, depression, anxiety can all be relieved with a change in diet.

Processed sugar, gluten/grains and dairy are the top offenders followed by  caffeine and alcohol.

Before you start complaining and whining to me that you are going to die without your daily blah blah blah.

I want to state again that this is only for 4 weeks. It may be even less because most of my clients come back a week to two weeks later exclaiming how great they feel and how many of the symptoms they were struggling with have disappeared.

With the absence of symptoms, most will continue on the journey of learning to eat in such a way as to keep their uncomfortable symptoms at bay.

I will also add that most of my clients will also have lost weight during this period.

With your motivation at its peak, this is the time to act. The trick now is to make these changes a lifestyle.

Finding foods and meals that meet your nutritional needs. Delicious recipes that meet your criteria for comfort foods. Meals that excite you and are easy to incorporate into your daily life.

This is where I come in.

I am able to make some simple twists to your usual recipes so they meet your new way of eating AND nourish you.

Many will fall off the track in a few weeks or months, especially during stressful times or holidays. However, they don’t stay off the track because they now know exactly what is causing the discomfort and falling off track is simply a good reminder of why they made the changes in the first place.

I call this the lifestyle part.

We all fall off track from time to time. In fact I embrace it. Part of being on holidays or enjoying special occasions is quite often treats that we wouldn’t normally eat.

As Libby Weaver would say, ‘it’s not what we do occasionally that matters, it’s what we do everyday’.

If you would like some help doing a 4 week experiment to see if any of your symptoms are related to what you are eating or drinking please click the link below and let’s get started.